


Storage Closet

by Ruined_Sketchbook



Category: Steam Powered Giraffe
Genre: Dysphoria, I started writing this one night and uhhh it turned into a oneshot, Trans Character, despite being trans myself I don't really know how to write dysphoria so!! I apologize!!, i don't know what this is
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-18
Updated: 2020-01-18
Packaged: 2021-02-27 07:54:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,560
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22303711
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ruined_Sketchbook/pseuds/Ruined_Sketchbook
Summary: There's a room in Walter Manor that is filled with old, discarded robot parts. Rusted metal, broken parts that have since been replaced, and all the old costumes they no longer used. Rabbit hasn't been feeling right lately, so he decides to pay a visit to the costume trunk. While playing dress-up, he discovers something about himself that will change his life.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 25





	Storage Closet

**Author's Note:**

> This story is set before Rabbit realizes she's trans, and as such, Rabbit (and other characters) will refer to her with "he/him" pronouns.
> 
> Also, this is my first SPG fanfic! So if the characters are wildly OOC, I apologize. I'm a pretty new fan as well- I've only like Steam Powered Giraffe for...what...a month? Two? So I'm sure there are bits and pieces of knowledge I haven't come across yet!
> 
> I hope you enjoy =D

It was around 11pm, and all was quiet in Walter manor. Probably because everyone was unable to cause a lot of ruckus. The human band members and most of the Walter Workers were already asleep by now. Peter Walter VI, Upgrade, and Zer0 were out picking up a special order of Crystal Pepsi for The Jon, who was more than likely in stasis to conserve energy until they got back. Hatchworth was curled up with GG in the library, and The Spine was probably slithering around in the Hall of Wires. The only one who was definitely both awake and home was Rabbit.

Presently, he was in the room that served as storage for old, no longer used robot parts. Whether those parts be rusted metal, used costumes, or replaced screws, here they stayed. The antique clockwork robot usually stayed away from this room- It’s never really that fun to be reminded of how old and in need of repairs he is. But tonight was different. Rabbit was looking for something he could only discreetly find here.

Something had been bugging him for the past few months. Well, really, it'd been bothering him for his entire existence. It was just now becoming more prevalent. An overwhelming sense of...of wrongness that filled his entire being. A wrongness that, for whatever reason, got worse around Upgrade. He knew it wasn't Upgrade herself that was the problem, though. It was more...what she was. The problem wasn't her being pink, or a princess, or being a bit defensive about being pretty...It was her being a her. Rabbit couldn't go very long around Upgrade without thinking about himself in dresses or singing all the high vocals that went to her. The crowns, the pink, the hair...He wanted it all, and he didn't know why.

After moving a few old parts off of it, Rabbit opened the trunk that held all their old costumes. He removed his hat and hung it on the corner of the top of the trunk, then started digging through the costumes. Anything that looked like a dress or a skirt he set off to the side. Everything else, he just flung over his shoulder. When he was done "sorting" through everything, he shoved all the guys' costumes back in before turning to Upgrade's stuff. He had plenty of options, because while all of them had gone through plenty of costume changes, Upgrade had tried extra hard to keep up with fashion trends. She always wanted to look as pretty as she could. Eventually, she decided to just stick with the one black dress, because she knew that no matter what she wore, she'd be the prettiest robot of them all, because she was the only girl robot in the group.

Rabbit paused for a moment, staring at the clothing he’d fished from the trunk. Outfits from different time periods and styles of dress were laid out before him, most of them in the color black, very few with red accents. Why Upgrade preferred all black, he’d never understand. You need at least a little color in your clothes. But, this was what he had to work with, so he couldn’t be too choosy. After some process of elimination, Rabbit picked the one he liked most and started to take off his regular costume. The buttons were a bit of a pain, as an old rusted robot like him had a bit of difficulty when it came to fine motor skills. The big red ones on his vest weren’t a problem, but the small ones on his shirt front and sleeves almost made him resort to asking for help. But then he remembered what he came here to do, and decided that asking for help was completely out of the question. He’d have to wake someone up, and they’d demand to know why, exactly, Rabbit needs to unbutton his sleeves so badly. He didn’t really feel like explaining, so instead, he just kept struggling until the buttons finally came undone. And maybe in his attempt, he managed to pull a button completely off, too. But that’s noneya.

After all his clothes were off his body and on the floor, Rabbit picked up the dress. There was something about what he was about to do that made him so, so excited. He didn’t even bother undoing the back- He just slipped the dress on like one would a shirt. After a bit of tugging, the dress was all the way on. It looked rather simple- A short-sleeved dress with a pleated skirt that ended just below the upper thigh. There was a little bit of poof to the skirt part, but nothing too extravagant. But, to him, it was like he was wearing the most amazing piece of clothing in existence. He felt so right wearing this. Like he should’ve been from the start. There were even a few red buttons on the skirt! The buttons were in a straight vertical line, but it seems only half of them were sewn on, as they didn’t reach the bottom. Upgrade must’ve changed her mind about this rather quickly for it to be incomplete. Or maybe it was a weird design choice.

He still wasn’t satisfied, though. After double-checking the costume trunk and digging around old props, he found a short, hot pink wig. This must’ve also been intended for Upgrade. It’s...probably for the best it got scrapped. It would’ve just made Upgrade way too pink. A light pink face and hot pink hair just didn’t go together. Maybe hot pink, copper, and green didn’t go together either, but Rabbit didn’t really care. He adjusted the bandana that covered the top of his head before putting on the wig and straightening it up. Rabbit walked over to the cracked mirror that sat in the corner of the room and started to pose in front of it, even doing a little twirl. He ended his twirl with his back facing the mirror.

“Well, well, w-w-we-well, who's that dame with the pink hair?” Rabbit turned to face the mirror, waggling his hips a little before strutting over to it. He then put on the most feminine voice he could muster (even if it was a little exaggerated). “She’s none other than Rabbit, the s-s-s-singing st-steam-powered automaton!”

He paused for a moment. “Rabbit. She. Huh. That has a n-n-n-nice ring to it, actually. Feels right. Maybe-”

“Hey, Rabbit?” There was a knock at the door, and Rabbit nearly jumped out of his (her?) chassis. The Spine was outside of the room, and Rabbit’s fears were this close to becoming reality. If The Spine came in, how was he (she) supposed to explain what she was doing?

“Uh, g-g-g-gimme a second! I’ve gotta, uh...put this stuff back!” Rabbit started pulling off the dress mid-sentence, nearly getting stuck in the process. When she got the dress off, she threw it to the side before pulling on her usual clothes as quickly as she could.

“What exactly is “this stuff”?” The Spine asked. Rabbit struggled with the buttons for a moment before she answered.

“Uh, a n-needle and thread! T-To fix the uh...The button that came off my shirt!”

“...”

“What??” She threw her hat back on and started to try and button her sleeves again.

“A needle and thread? In the robot parts storage room?” Rabbit mentally smacked herself for that one. Of course sewing supplies wouldn’t be in here- If anything, they’d be in the room of a Walter Worker or miss Skadunas- Not a storage room intended for robot parts!

“Uh...Yeah!” Deciding to just give up on the damned buttons, Rabbit opened the door and smiled at her brother. “Hey! I’m all finished up in here. Uh..”

Rabbit held up her arm, pulling at her sleeves. “Could you help me with these? You know how well b-b-b-buttons and I get along. Not. We do not get along well.”

“Of course, Rabbit.” The Spine buttoned up his sibling’s sleeves as she tried her best not to glance back at the dress to see if it was obviously out of place. “...Wait a minute.”

“Hmm?” _`Please please please don’t be about the dress-`_

“If you were fixing up your shirt..” The Spine turned the sleeve so that Rabbit could see the place the missing button used to be. “How come there’s still a button missing?”

“W-W-Well, uh-”

“And how would you be able to sew a small button to your shirt when you’re so rusted that you can’t move your fingers very well?”

“...”

“Well?”

“...I gotta go to my room-” With that, Rabbit started booking it away from the storage room and The Spine. Was this a good idea with how rusty and rickety she was? Absolutely not. Did it get her away from The Spine’s questioning? Of course.

“...” The Spine only took a glance at the storage room, barely acknowledging how out of place everything looked. He knew that Rabbit was lying. There was, of course, the fact there was no sewing supplies, the missing button, and Rabbit’s lack of fine motor skills…

But, uh...Sewing on a button doesn’t require a pink wig.

He’ll just ask Rabbit about it in the morning. He knows Rabbit will just avoid any more questioning tonight- Plus, he’s got some wires to slither around in.


End file.
